by Tammy L Mahan

Created on: May 22, 2010

The Pearl Gourami (Trichogsterleeri) belongs to the Belontiidae family. The fish’s native origin is Sumatra, Malaysia, and Borneo. The Pearl Gourami is a calm fish and it is happy living in a community aquarium with other calm, non-aggressive fish.

The Pearl Gourami is a beautiful fish and when the fish is still and the water is slowly moving over its’ body, it resembles that of a pearl.

The Pearl Gourami reaches four inches in length as an adult. This species of gourami has ventral fins that are thin and long. The body has an elongated shape that is literally compressed. You can easily recognize a Pearl Gourami by brown and pearl colored spots on its’ body. It also has a long black strip that runs from the mouth, appearing to run straight through the eyes all the way to the tail, where it ends as a rather large spot.

The Pearl Gourami is one of the easiest in this species to take care of. They require a ten gallon tank with a water ph of 6.5 to 8.5, a water hardness of five to thirty, and a water temperature of seventy-four to eighty-two degrees Fahrenheit. They prefer dim lighting and dark areas to hide in. They also need a large amount of vegetation and especially enjoy floating plants. Although, they prefer a water temperature of seventy-four to eighty-two degrees Fahrenheit, they can easily adapt to temperatures slightly lower or higher.

The Pearl Gourami is omnivorous and likes a diet of just about any type of food. These fish will eat store bought fish food and flakes as well as frozen foods and freeze dried foods. To make sure that they get a well balanced diet they should also be fed small amounts of vegetables in tiny portions such as, brine shrimp, glass and black worms should also be provided. If you are planning on breeding the Pearl Gouramis’, the live food should be offered more often as a conditioning food for breeding.

Breeding the Pearl Gouramis is easy. They are one of the easiest fish to breed. They will need to be provided with live food as mentioned above, and moved into a separate aquarium. The water level in the breeding aquarium should be about six inches deep with a temperature of about eighty degrees Fahrenheit. They also need a large assortment of floating plants.

The male Pearl Gourami builds the bubble nest. The male will wrap his body around the females’. She will then release hundreds of eggs. The eggs are free floating, they will float to the top of the aquarium. Unlike other species of gouramis’, the male will stay in the same aquarium with the eggs. The male will care for the eggs until they hatch. Once the fries begin to swim, in about four days the male should be returned to the community aquarium.

The Pearl Gourami is very easy to care for and has an average life span of about eight years.

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